Polygalactomannans, polyglucomannans, and other non-cellulosic polysaccharides and their derivatives are used in various applications such as oil recovery, personal care products, textile applications, paper applications, coating applications, food applications, pharmaceutical applications, etc. Cationic polysaccharides and other polymers have been used widely in personal care, household, industrial, and institutional products to perform a function in the final product, ranging from the use of the polymer as gellants, binders, thickeners, stabilizers, emulsifiers, spreading and deposition aids, and carriers for enhancing the rheology, efficacy, deposition, aesthetics and delivery of chemically and physiologically active ingredients in personal care, (e.g., cosmetic, oral care, baby care), household, or pet care compositions. Depending on the application, the substrate can be skin, hair, or textile substrates.
Both low and high molecular weight polygalactomannans such as cationic guars, marketed under the trade names N-Hance® or Jaguar® cationic guars, are commonly used as conditioners in personal cleansing products such as shampoos, 2-in-1 or 3-in-1 conditioning shampoos and body washes, which are formulated at acidic or neutral pH values. The cationic functional group on these polymers is the hydroxypropyl trimethyl ammonium group, where all three substituent groups on the nitrogen are methyl groups containing one carbon.
Cationic polysaccharides are used in hair care products to provide conditioning to the hair. In skin care products, these same polymers can provide conditioning effects to the skin. When incorporated into detergent and fabric softening formulations, these same polymers can provide conditioning, softening, and antistatic characteristics to fabrics.
Wet and dry combability measurements are typical test methods used to measure conditioning performance in shampoo and conditioner applications. Commercial conditioning polymers in the marketplace have been reported to reduce the wet combing force experienced on combing wet hair by 30%-80% relative to the shampoo containing no polymer.
Conditioning performance in a shampoo application can also be measured by monitoring the decrease in optical transmittance of a transparent shampoo or cleansing formulation containing conditioning polymers on increasing dilution with water. The larger the drop in transmittance on dilution with water, the greater the level of deposition. The drop in transmittance or decrease in optical clarity of the formulation is associated with precipitation of the conditioning polymer from the shampoo or other cleansing formulation. The conditioning polymer can be deposited in the form of a complex with surfactants in the formulation or in an uncomplexed form.
The amount of silicone, other conditioning oils or functional materials, zinc, or other active or performance material deposited onto hair or the scalp from a shampoo or colorant system, onto skin from a cleansing or conditioning body wash, or onto fabric from a surfactant-based laundry formulation is also a measure of the conditioning performance of a conditioning polymer. The uniformity or nonuniformity of deposition of the silicone, other conditioning oils or conditioning materials, zinc, fragrance, or other “active” material can have significant impact on the perceived performance of the cosmetic formulation. The deposition profile is especially important on substrates such as: 1) hair fibers, where deposition along the fiber, from root to tip, is needed to ameliorate the damage in areas toward the tip or end of the hair fiber and to deposit color uniformly from hair coloring formulations and maintain color uniformity along the fibers; 2) on skin, especially in dry or damaged areas of the skin, where deposition of oils, other conditioning agents, active materials such as antimicrobial agents, sunscreen actives, or colorants such as self-tanning ingredients is needed to occur uniformly; and 3) on fabrics, where deposition occurs, especially on damaged or worn areas, of fabrics such as wool, cotton, polyester.
In skincare applications, skin lubricity or reduced friction or softer feel of the skin, reduced water vapor transmission and improved skin elasticity are test methods used to measure skin conditioning. In surfactant-based household cleansing product formulations where conditioning performance is desired, such as dish detergents, laundry detergents, fabric softeners, and antistatic products, conditioning refers to imparting a softer feel to fabric and eliminating static effects, eliminating fabric fiber breakage or deformation known as pilling. Imparting color retention or color vibrancy properties to fabrics is also important and can be measured.
In addition to conditioning applications, non-cellulosic cationically modified polysaccharides can also be used for rheology modification of these formulations, lather enhancement as well as for lather stability and for delivery and prolonged retention of other personal care formulation ingredients, such as fragrances, dyes, or antimicrobial compounds, on the deposition surface.
Despite the well known utility of non-cellulosic cationically modified polysaccharides as conditioning polymers in surfactant based cleansing formulations as deposition aids for conditioning oils and active treatment delivery to the hair and skin, the repeated use of these polymers can confer unwanted buildup of conditioning components, such as silicone and other oils, on the hair. This buildup is apparent as an increase in the energy needed to comb through the dry hair, and as a sticky feel to the hair. In addition, the current classes of conditioning polymers deliver more conditioning to the root end of the hair fiber, and there is a need to create polymer compositions that deliver more uniform deposition of silicone and other actives along the length of the hair fiber, to the middle section and tip of the hair fiber, where the fiber is more damaged and in need of more conditioning. Finally, in the area of antidandruff and delivery of antimicrobial active materials to the scalp, there is a need for increasing the efficiency of delivery of antimicrobial compound from surfactant systems such as shampoos and hand cleansers, as well as better targeting delivery to the scalp and skin, and maintaining it in place for prolonged activity.